The Office Furniture Blog

When the dealership was originally opened, the most significant marketing tool available at the time was “The Yellow Pages.” Unfortunately, the books were only printed once a year. Based on our physical location, we wanted to market to a 20 mile radius. This meant we would have to advertise in 5 editions, all with different release dates and most of them being months away from the start date. In an effort to get the word out to our target market, I spent a significant amount of time networking. It was not unusual for me to attend business card exchanges hosted by area Chamber of Commerce‘s and other local business groups a few nights a week. It was a very gradual thing, but it eventually paid big dividends for my business. After seeing my face numerous times, I started to get quality leads which eventually turned into sales. The office furniture business is very much a “people relationship” business and we deal primarily with professional business people.

The best advice I can give anyone starting a business, especially a local based business is: Network, Network, Network! If done on a consistent basis with the right people, success is much more easily attainable.

After I left my prior employer, I had exactly 4 weeks to get the office furniture showroom set up and ready for opening day. I found a nice space in an old textile mill that needed minimal renovations, paint and carpet. After hiring a paint contractor and ordering the carpet, I decided to take my pregnant wife and daughter on a long weekend vacation since it was anybody’s guess when I would be able to take some time off.

Upon my return, I then worked closely with area furniture wholesalers and furniture manufacturers to get both educated and also plan the showroom floor. After determining the appropriate product mix I placed an order and shortly after received the products. With the help of my good friends, we had a “Showroom Setup Party”.

Our next step was to purchase a mailing list of businesses’ in a 20 mile radius and have some flyers printed. We did a bulk mailing announcing the opening and in order to minimize expenses, we had 4 different flyers printed at the same time. Our plan was to do a mailing every 30 days. A news release mailing was sent to all area chamber of commerces’ and ads were placed in local business publications. A “Grand Opening” was scheduled, a mailing was sent to all members of the local chamber and the local newspaper was invited to cover the event.

We hit the ground running with a successful “Grand Opening” event and have never looked back. We have made many changes through the years and have tried to adapt to the ever-changing market. Keeping an open mind and being open to change will hopefully insure the continuesd long-term success of the business.

After 11 years working in the private sector, the last 4 for a major manufacturer of office products, I decided that the best thing for my family and I would be to start my own business. At that time I had a 2 year old daughter. The day I told my wife that I was going to take the plunge, she informed me that she was pregnant with daughter number 2. Undeterred, for the next year I worked diligently to develop a comprehensive marketing plan to make sure that on day 1, not only were we open for business, but we would hit the ground running.

We were up and running 30 days after I left my marketing position. In the year prior to opening, I visited many office furniture dealers along the East Coast to see how they operated and also met with many manufacturer representatives and office furniture wholesalers to determine what would be the best product mix. I also re-mortgaged my house to get a line of credit and opened as many no annual fee credit cards just in case we needed financing. Banks in general do not like to lend to start ups. Fortunately, my wife had a good job in the pharmaceutical industry, so we were able to at least pay the mortgage and basic bills and not go deeper into debt. After determining the market I wanted to serve, an affordable central location was found (at that time, prior to the internet, customers were believed that they would travel up to 30 minutes to see your offering) and the showroom was set up.

At the age of 33, I had the education, experience and fortitude to work long hours and tried to minimize expenses by being the salesman, delivery person and operations manager. I did hire an inside person as well as one delivery person to help with the process. I acquired a marketing mailing list of local companies and sent out a series of mailings to get the word out. I also joined the local Chamber of Commerce, sent out newspaper press releases and had an Open House for the Grand Opening. The business received orders from day one. I also joined numerous professional groups and made business card exchanges a weekly event. The efforts paid off quickly. We made many mistakes in the beginning, but learned quickly and kept moving forward. As my first real business enterprise, I learned to be open to other ideas and never resist change and do whatever it takes to satisfy your customer, no job is beneath you. Plus, the more things you learn to do in a company, the better prepared you are to deal with problems and adversity.

Furniture Frank

On March 1^st, Office Furniture Concepts (ofconcepts.com) completed 25 years of successfully serving its thousands of customers nationwide. From its humble beginnings as a local dealer, Ofconcepts has become a nationwide distributor of quality product from name brand manufacturers at competitive prices. They also place professional customer service as the number one priority. Ofconcepts was one of the first online merchants, even before Google was a company. With the tremendous influx of technology in today’s world, it has been a very exciting time to be in business. I wish to extend a special thank you to those that have had the confidence to trust ofconcepts in providing solutions that work. During the next year, I will be sharing some of my most treasured experiences through the blog. We look forward to serving you for many years to come. Again, thank you for choosing Office Furniture Concepts, ofconcepts.com.

Sincerely,

Furniture Frank

Office Furniture Concepts, ofconcepts.com, does not directly hold any GSA Contracts. However, many of the items we sell are available on GSA Contract through our different manufacturers. The manufacturers negotiate the contracts for their dealer base. This gives us the ability to sell to government agencies under pre-negotiated GSA pricing as an authorized dealer. Manufacturers in general do not have all of their items on contract but typically have the “A” items on contract. Items on contract are typically domestic made and do not include imported items. To find out if a specific item is on GSA contract, please contact ofconcepts.com directly. In the event the item is on contract, we would be happy to get you a formal quote which will list the specific contract number and appropriate discount schedule. Items not on contract, can be purchased as “Open Market”. Office Furniture Concepts does accept all Government Credit Cards and Purchase Orders.

OFConcepts works with many office furniture manufacturers throughout the country. Our manufacturers offer many fabric and finish options for their various products. Viewing color sample swatches online can be a good guide, but when in doubt, we highly recommend that you contact us directly to order and receive exact samples. We will order these directly from the specific manufacturer who will send them to you. The main thing to keep in mind is that this will add some time to the sales process, in general, an additional week. We feel very strongly, that as long as you have some time on your side, order the samples desired. This will insure that you are totally satisfied with your purchase.

In order to get a price for inside delivery and set up, you must talk directly to an OFConcepts representative by either phone or e-mail. We have a nationwide network of professional installers that can assist with this service. Since no two deliveries are the same, we must collect pertinent information related to the install to quote a price. In general, the most important factors pertain to issues such as installation times. Many commercial buildings do not permit deliveries/installations during normal business hours. In situations such as these, installers are required to complete their service after hours  and have to pay their crews overtime. It is best to consult with the building management prior to delivery/installation to determine if there are any restrictions or requirements for your building.

Also, logistic information such as the availability of a loading dock or freight elevator will affect the price. Installations that require a liftgate (if there is no loading dock) or stairs (if there is no elevator) will be more time consuming and more expensive. After consulting with an OFConcepts representative, the customer will be advised of the charges involved. In the event that Inside Delivery and Set Up are not required, OFConcepts will instruct the delivery company to contact you at least 24 hours prior to delivery. This will enable you to have the necessary resources available to accept the delivery with minimal problems. For additional information, please contact OFConcepts directly.

In most cases, the furniture you order will require minor assembly. For larger orders, we do offer assembly at an additional charge, nationwide. There are numerous reasons that the furniture is not already setup with the biggest being transportation costs. A very significant amount of office furniture produced today comes from overseas and is shipped to US Ports in containers on ships. This allows for more product to be shipped in a container, keeping transportation costs lower. In addition, in the event that a part is damaged, it is easier and quicker to replace parts. Many items ship via UPS or Fedex Ground, this keeps shipping charges to a minimum. Bigger items ship by truck LTL. Most manufacturers have easy to follow assembly instructions along with factory websites that have more assembly detail, along with 800 numbers for more technical assistance. In the event you do not want to deal with any delivery/assembly issues, contact us directly. We will do everything possible to find an affordable, practical solution that meets your needs.

We get many calls from individuals concerning parts for chairs they either purchased on received second hard. Unfortunately, the office furniture industry is not like many other industries, such as automobiles and electronics, where finding replacement pars for specific models is an easy process. There are so many manufacturers and models available in office seating that it is sometimes very difficult if not impossible to get replacement parts. Plus, there are very few standard parts used. Ideally, the best way to insure that parts can be obtained and chairs fixed, is to purchase the item from and authorized dealer for the item in question. In the even of a problem, you should have your records and can identify the model number. This information afford the dealer the opportunity to determine whether or not it is a warranty situation. They then can contact the specific manufacturer to get replacement parts. As an authorized dealer for many manufacturers such as OfficeStar, Norstar/Boss, OFM, Global, Mayline, Offices to Go and Balt, as long as parts are available and the items was purchased from us, OFConcepts.com, we can provide you with service after the sale to help you get the most out of your investment.

The Boss Metal Presenter Cart by Balt has a top that measures 23 1/2″W x 20 1/2″D and has non-ski pad and security rails. The two side shelves fold when not in use and also feature non-skid pads. This cart also has a built-in VGA, USB, AV input/ouput inlet for connections to computer, projector, Internet cables, etc., which is located under one of the shelves. The silver color adds a contemporary touch to any existing conference room furniture.